ADAM SANDLER TAKES A SERIOUS GAMBLE WITH 'UNCUT GEMS'

<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0Fgtw2JxXKpQwmDBlfwfotFc58iOYAi5ZeXGDDulgy5XruMKJR2OMNCxIPGPQsZjFhRaIqqWF-RwjKhcJlyYhusNCaITX2a4Ma59CIKNasbgCYc9Tf1FmSe3iyyEYeIREZlZLraBMAsUM/s1600/Screen+Shot+2020-05-26+at+9.48.29+PM.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="914" data-original-width="1600" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0Fgtw2JxXKpQwmDBlfwfotFc58iOYAi5ZeXGDDulgy5XruMKJR2OMNCxIPGPQsZjFhRaIqqWF-RwjKhcJlyYhusNCaITX2a4Ma59CIKNasbgCYc9Tf1FmSe3iyyEYeIREZlZLraBMAsUM/s1600/Screen+Shot+2020-05-26+at+9.48.29+PM.jpeg"></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>A very loud Adam Sandler is louder than ever in UNCUT GEMS Year: 2019</u></td></tr> </tbody></table> A movie that literally begins deep inside Adam Sandler's ass (during a colonoscopy), UNCUT GEMS has provided Sandler — as a jeweler in debt from reckless gambling — accolades for a different kind of performance...<br> <br> And while not another goofy Happy Madison production, his "Screaming Guy" routine is nothing new — sans the soft-spoken baby talk before the inevitable Nirvana-like shift from clean to distorted loudness occurs...<br> <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiziF-P-bvV2uj0c3_OSsBQWCqFCDWZwMdf36CJqdf5iEiVwubIok32SLW420exspB64Xn92CgaOymOs7pg-YYbbWJfEPpwVCpS2C2SYnBRqhbSq60Mn1zDMpZdNOJoKyfO7whXgW2QbFZG/s1600/Screen+Shot+2020-05-26+at+9.33.56+PM.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="658" data-original-width="1600" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiziF-P-bvV2uj0c3_OSsBQWCqFCDWZwMdf36CJqdf5iEiVwubIok32SLW420exspB64Xn92CgaOymOs7pg-YYbbWJfEPpwVCpS2C2SYnBRqhbSq60Mn1zDMpZdNOJoKyfO7whXgW2QbFZG/s1600/Screen+Shot+2020-05-26+at+9.33.56+PM.jpeg"></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Adam Sandler pointing the way in UNCUT GEMS Rating: **</u></td></tr> </tbody></table> For the most part, GEMS is a gritty New York City arthouse flick that never intentionally settles into one place comfortably; and the frantic, neurotic, fast-talking Sandler has his moments...<br> <br> The problem is that the directors — throwing in too many characters and an annoying, intrusive score — keep trying to out-frantic their leading man, making it tough if impossible to know what's going on, or why. Unlike the far superior, equally artistic PUNCH-DRUNK LOVE, the man simply gets lost in the shuffle.<br> <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0qP-5WjclHsdTiHXBluTuaVJ9wNERKxtCs9wJOMNEUqC98KQRRtEKNsmpN3cJMinFdqdaGxL6w_Z1wk6r5kPuSEwWug_IoY9dy65LKSLxUl0-Kry6SmrthznXKOY_3Vsz14K_z7uZCP9c/s1600/Screen+Shot+2020-05-26+at+10.00.37+PM.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="740" data-original-width="1600" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0qP-5WjclHsdTiHXBluTuaVJ9wNERKxtCs9wJOMNEUqC98KQRRtEKNsmpN3cJMinFdqdaGxL6w_Z1wk6r5kPuSEwWug_IoY9dy65LKSLxUl0-Kry6SmrthznXKOY_3Vsz14K_z7uZCP9c/s1600/Screen+Shot+2020-05-26+at+10.00.37+PM.jpeg"></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><u>Adam Sandler running in circles for UNCUT GEMS</u></td></tr> </tbody></table>

2019, adam sandler, drama, gambling, new, suspense

ADAM SANDLER TAKES A SERIOUS GAMBLE WITH 'UNCUT GEMS'

A very loud Adam Sandler is louder than ever in UNCUT GEMS Year: 2019 A movie that literally begins deep inside Adam Sandler's ass (...

ADAM SANDLER STARRING IN PIXELS

<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgN1k4JZz5EmJVhNZHYqwP4TtGuYmXrhVdTEWhidXu4BYZLZAVx_O-WMppayTFRGKIXIJnibu0hOWa3AlwczPsNbks1fClcFLqw1wjjGQX39WFDaXf_ZjtTUYLLrqKo5alg3rWRIfs9Ki4/s1600/Screen+shot+2015-07-23+at+10.16.30+PM.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgN1k4JZz5EmJVhNZHYqwP4TtGuYmXrhVdTEWhidXu4BYZLZAVx_O-WMppayTFRGKIXIJnibu0hOWa3AlwczPsNbks1fClcFLqw1wjjGQX39WFDaXf_ZjtTUYLLrqKo5alg3rWRIfs9Ki4/s320/Screen+shot+2015-07-23+at+10.16.30+PM.png" width="140" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">2015 rating: ***1/2</td></tr> </tbody></table> While THE WEDDING SINGER took us literally back to the '80s, that era's beloved video games are the centerpiece in PIXELS, and they're no longer safely locked inside an arcade game. Something has happened as a hostile planet, misreading a transmission where Adam Sander participated in a video game competition, takes the form of havoc-wreaking creatures like CENTIPEDE, PAC MAN and DONKEY KONG.<br /> <br /> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiG41tQZ2DdpqiJcu9jhTEBDKqg_MxVWKwPQFPIiKpTHuSBT2Rv1aVvVUpqUKZznoE2g1mMuizQ_g8FQLZ9EVAH2iKkaZ0VZ6hVFW_XsEROVOnI-VaLgayEut-i807mhPbIqR129OUAxVo/s1600/Screen+shot+2015-07-23+at+10.36.49+PM.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiG41tQZ2DdpqiJcu9jhTEBDKqg_MxVWKwPQFPIiKpTHuSBT2Rv1aVvVUpqUKZznoE2g1mMuizQ_g8FQLZ9EVAH2iKkaZ0VZ6hVFW_XsEROVOnI-VaLgayEut-i807mhPbIqR129OUAxVo/s320/Screen+shot+2015-07-23+at+10.36.49+PM.png" width="94" /></a>One nice surprise, given the usual banality of the latter Happy Madison productions, is the "legit" technical setup moving from one scene to the next, feeling like an INDEPENDENCE DAY meets GHOSTBUSTERS: serious matters combined with the buddy/teamup genre as Sandler, a tech repair guy, his best friend Kevin James, now the President of the United States, join with eccentric gamers Josh Gad and Peter Dinklage and love interest Michelle Monaghan to battle the suddenly nefarious pixelated icons wherein Pac Man's New York rampage is an action sequence standout (director Chris Columbus at the helm).<br /> <br /> Meanwhile, the characters go from region to region, figuring things out with a lot of busy, often redundant banter. But even the slow parts have a decent amount of witty interplay between participants. Some of the jokes fall flat, sure, but it doesn't matter since another nostalgic curio is around every bend, and it's neat seeing those classic games playing (by their actual rules) outside the box.

2015, adam sandler, josh gad, kevin james, peter dinklage

ADAM SANDLER STARRING IN PIXELS

2015 rating: ***1/2 While THE WEDDING SINGER took us literally back to the '80s, that era's beloved video games are the centerpi...

JOURNEY THROUGH THE INTERNET, AFRICA & THE RAPTURE

<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitCW3yiUtQm02bZv6aEpNnUH-m2x77rerfWlcwjI-Uq9b5s_ddyu0ZrUsCAeZNJSasZOpYQZ4WKpq_T0DXqfDWyTYu9LaS9Yuc8s7GvZmTNVBprptOD6-MaJhRV8nC9a7GacsicRDvS_Y/s1600/1.jpg" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitCW3yiUtQm02bZv6aEpNnUH-m2x77rerfWlcwjI-Uq9b5s_ddyu0ZrUsCAeZNJSasZOpYQZ4WKpq_T0DXqfDWyTYu9LaS9Yuc8s7GvZmTNVBprptOD6-MaJhRV8nC9a7GacsicRDvS_Y/s1600/1.jpg" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">year: 2014 rating: **1/2</td></tr> </tbody></table> <div style="text-align: right;"> </div> <i>In a weekend dominated by a missing girl and a demonic doll, here's a three-pack including THE GOOD LIE, LEFT BEHIND and beginning with...</i><br /> <br /> <b>MEN, WOMEN & CHILDREN: </b>Seeing the Internet in a movie is like hearing a toilet flushing, in a movie… It’s so familiar we’d much prefer to escape life’s, um, personal necessities...<br /> <br /> Nothing doing with Jason Reitman’s MEN, WOMEN & CHILDREN, a film centering on an ensemble of characters, parents and teenagers, all using the almighty Net for various reasons: From dating sites to video games to modeling to texting: the latter appearing on the screen to showcase our distracted society. <br /> <br /> The cast is loaded with potential talent, but Dean BREAKING BAD Norris should have had a lot more to do than passively navigate his son’s game-playing while Adam Sandler has a chance of reliving PUNCH-DRUNK LOVE… By turning in a serious role, perhaps he could prove something once again. But the males, including an existential high school ex football hero and a porn addicted jock, seem merely along for the ride... <br /> <br /> <table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCGKzDNSpPnXGZfPrex_s4_G-KBj87aG3GqQFxdaNgvqpCTTNJDhI9GZynxNd5G2WtGKzGsv5WgFfS1aco9UqZ2tGVTeZ4XRFOw-RINb7efFy66rW9c8aH_aWviSEtBMMrE54wDI4w26g/s1600/men-women-children-will-peltz-elena-kampouris.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCGKzDNSpPnXGZfPrex_s4_G-KBj87aG3GqQFxdaNgvqpCTTNJDhI9GZynxNd5G2WtGKzGsv5WgFfS1aco9UqZ2tGVTeZ4XRFOw-RINb7efFy66rW9c8aH_aWviSEtBMMrE54wDI4w26g/s200/men-women-children-will-peltz-elena-kampouris.jpg" width="148" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A cute blonde</td></tr> </tbody></table> It’s the women who have the most interesting, risqué storylines. One wife cheats… A young girl persists on staying skinny and loses her virginity to a jerk… An uptight mother, played by the film’s main antagonist, Jennifer Garner, strictly monitors her mopey, lovestruck kid… Meanwhile, Judy Greer’s progressive single mom takes unconventional pictures for her sexy daughter’s modeling website. <br /> <br /> Everyone eventually connects, romantically or otherwise. And like MAGNOLIA and many ensemble films, there’s a stream of conscious narrative bringing things  together…<br /> <br /> In this particular case it's the Voyager Satellite hovering just beyond our solar system with Carl Sagan as the token philosopher, providing depth through the wise voice of Emma Thompson, the female Morgan Freeman here…<br /> <br /> But going beneath the surface level, whether an inch or a mile, can be considered deep. Ironically, the most intriguing elements occur during the mundane, everyday observations, and not when the writers try for meaning: That’s when things get preachy and pretentious, and downright predictable.    <br /> <br /> <table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVR4k4gmV584dRvTQpMiu9SpXKVaqkH7KlCS11rX6P7FeBXRBvbx4i9U7-p8ou_fb8YY0FVpOA7sAki24Ju9KAzQeLhcMBUO3JbaiST7M9O6ZfSojV9F56F0IJ3-IRFjRCP624SC8srts/s1600/2.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVR4k4gmV584dRvTQpMiu9SpXKVaqkH7KlCS11rX6P7FeBXRBvbx4i9U7-p8ou_fb8YY0FVpOA7sAki24Ju9KAzQeLhcMBUO3JbaiST7M9O6ZfSojV9F56F0IJ3-IRFjRCP624SC8srts/s320/2.jpg" width="203" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">year: 2014 rating: ***</td></tr> </tbody></table> <div style="text-align: left;"> </div> <b>THE GOOD LIE:</b> You would think, judging by the trailers and the poster, THE GOOD LIE centered mostly on Reese Witherspoon’s bitch with a heart of gold, Carrie, and her friendship with three African refugees… But Carrie has little to do with the film but “babysit”… Yet she hardly even does that…<br /> <br /> The real story centers on a young "family", beginning with their on-foot journey from war-torn Sudan to Kenya. This prologue lasts twenty minutes but packs about every trial and tribulation you can imagine –  drinking their own urine, dodging bullets and battling fierce wild animals, the preliminary trek is rushed in order to segue into the feel-good movie it becomes once the children, grown into college age young adults, move to Kansas City where a moody Witherspoon sets them up with various jobs.<br /> <br /> It would be impossible to delve into the immense pain these kids felt unless ample time and effort was provided for us to, as the old saying goes, walk in their shoes. There are sporadic flashbacks and conversations to shed light on their past, but THE GOOD LIE is really a fish out of water tale not about surviving, but adapting in the comparably soft American culture. <br /> <br /> During the last twenty minutes, when the family "chief" returns to Africa in search of a very special person, not only does the title become perfectly clear, the movie fills in the gaps from a somewhat cushy interpretation of hardship and struggle, providing a satisfying conclusion – for the characters and the audience.  <br /> <br /> <table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwHOnw5f-PLaJodmaV1OV_gXKBtISUKZmJIjjhasZH1rtb0fV0gDUkZwwUUPfXxvr2UbeEXEZh80C3lCc1p3oddanNIPWF_Jm3xZ28oPvajQ6mUANcvlUhvXcXe3IWGZL8q7IkdQngBoE/s1600/3.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwHOnw5f-PLaJodmaV1OV_gXKBtISUKZmJIjjhasZH1rtb0fV0gDUkZwwUUPfXxvr2UbeEXEZh80C3lCc1p3oddanNIPWF_Jm3xZ28oPvajQ6mUANcvlUhvXcXe3IWGZL8q7IkdQngBoE/s320/3.jpg" width="198" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">year: 2014 rating: **</td></tr> </tbody></table> <b>LEFT BEHIND:</b> Nicolas Cage, the once A-list superstar and Oscar winning actor, could be viewed as taking a serious downgrade by headlining the low budget Biblical-based thriller, LEFT BEHIND… Although, since he’s been demoted to Straight-to-DVD hell the last few years, perhaps this return to theaters is his way of serving in heaven, literally. <br /> <br /> After a ponderous twenty-minute conversation within an airport terminal, the plot clunks underway… Based on a novel foretelling the predictions in Revelations – where God’s Rapture will take only Christians to heaven – much of the suspense takes place on a commercial airplane where Cage’s Rayford Steele is the sole pilot…<br /> <br /> The children, a flight attendant and most important, co-pilot, have all been whisked away – all that’s LEFT are a pile of clothing… Same thing’s happened globally; but we center on Captain Steele’s hardened Atheist daughter Hattie, played by Nicky Whelan… It’s her character we followed through the overlong prologue, and she’s the focal point on the ground. In fact the Rapture begin on her “watch” when her little brother vanishes in the middle of a heartfelt hug.<br /> <br /> <table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgu7YpBS6aJ65qJXBp5k0tDESnmaVKYqc0rxDKFlyv04jLv4UiShrl-B20XliSSNrAmlJzKyvNsNaSGhWS_ZIHkGoegWywkQruAH0fOQCA5He9FJnllj2y2WfT_cpPeS5tN8-m-orVLUIw/s1600/1351180703_nicolas-cage-knowing-film-photos_1024x768_19521.jpg" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgu7YpBS6aJ65qJXBp5k0tDESnmaVKYqc0rxDKFlyv04jLv4UiShrl-B20XliSSNrAmlJzKyvNsNaSGhWS_ZIHkGoegWywkQruAH0fOQCA5He9FJnllj2y2WfT_cpPeS5tN8-m-orVLUIw/s200/1351180703_nicolas-cage-knowing-film-photos_1024x768_19521.jpg" width="107" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Nic Cage</td></tr> </tbody></table> Skipping from the airplane to the city, the best scenes occur eight miles high. Take away the Rapture aspect and we have a selected group of paranoid passengers not trusting each other, resulting in our heroic pilot having to land the airplane back in New York, just like the AIRPORT films of yesteryear. Meanwhile, an attempt to wedge the Christian agenda is awkward and clumsy...<br /> <br /> But since it's a tale about people who weren’t lucky enough to make the ethereal cut, if this particular vehicle works, a franchise about desperate heroes surviving a godless world might crossover to the mainstream… After all, who's around to preach Christianity? <br /> <br /> With a distracting low budget and a cheap acoustic soundtrack, LEFT BEHIND might be just that in the box office: not faithful enough for the faith-based and not exciting enough for a suspenseful thriller. Yet there are times when Cage makes you forget he's stuck in a bad movie. After all, he's had plenty of practice lately.

2014, adam sandler, drama, ensemble, nicolas cage, reese witherspoon, thriller

JOURNEY THROUGH THE INTERNET, AFRICA & THE RAPTURE

year: 2014 rating: **1/2 In a weekend dominated by a missing girl and a demonic doll, here's a three-pack including THE GOOD LIE, ...

ADAM & DREW RETURN IN BLENDED

<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3FEfTZwoW78OI7lRX_6UXzeSLEJVHvgwC3vHjLj1-c4RSQ3Zsm7wsGlaapt3nRPx1DO4E_r2ykoe40hYDbdyDBqMamPG3ofni36POrVyVRRW_DL0amATJs4y6JW0SjJ4POAECEr2QYrs/s1600/trailer-for-adam-sandler-and-drew-barrymores-blended.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3FEfTZwoW78OI7lRX_6UXzeSLEJVHvgwC3vHjLj1-c4RSQ3Zsm7wsGlaapt3nRPx1DO4E_r2ykoe40hYDbdyDBqMamPG3ofni36POrVyVRRW_DL0amATJs4y6JW0SjJ4POAECEr2QYrs/s320/trailer-for-adam-sandler-and-drew-barrymores-blended.jpg" width="164" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">year: 2014</td></tr> </tbody></table> <div style="text-align: right;"> </div> Just when you thought it was safe to go back to an Adam Sandler movie, up rears BLENDED, a romantic comedy crossed between THE BRADY BUNCH and just about any other throwaway “Happy Madison” production from the last decade…<br /> <br /> <table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfoGfoMGMn2lca7DPzooQWoomLJc3G6OiIdBeMckYA25nv3csL7PDT20TICDJX6SYhUAPtT6M64e1Dx0xW2b9EFlyI-NFqKqL7bSWdOqPUxjFT8CyAYiqEF0RBwputgVYZm8LWM3_3RXg/s1600/2.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfoGfoMGMn2lca7DPzooQWoomLJc3G6OiIdBeMckYA25nv3csL7PDT20TICDJX6SYhUAPtT6M64e1Dx0xW2b9EFlyI-NFqKqL7bSWdOqPUxjFT8CyAYiqEF0RBwputgVYZm8LWM3_3RXg/s320/2.jpg" width="164" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">rating: *</td></tr> </tbody></table> And to think the popular teamup of Sandler and Drew Barrymore, who made the ‘80s generation cheerfully nostalgic with THE WEDDING SINGER followed by the sweet and sappy 50 FIRST DATES, would be part of a venture where their cozy chemistry was not only the least important aspect of the story, but is hardly recognizable past the horrendous side characters including each of their three children… his girls, her boys… and especially the tourists in Africa, all taking part in a “Blended” vacation where an eclectic assortment of couples experience a brand new honeymoon… The catch here is both Adam and Drew's families are using the same fake name to get a free trip, becoming a pseudo clan... And of course Cupid lurks around every corner.  <br /> <br /> Former SNL alumni Kevin Nealon's role, part of a March/November relationship with an airhead blonde, is almost as unfunny as the lounge band of African singers who, providing a zany Greek chorus, brings BLENDED to an embarrassingly awful (and to some, even racist) level, possibly even surpassing JACK AND JILL in the cringe factor. <br /> <br /> <table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjxRz44pleQ3lj3uAkIUF2QZ4pqJKP57ta6z22abfw__ajnle0dPtzaDrP-pYJ1AjVvmAt3vJql6C1Yw5ah71OXCclz_IcvFEnPyVnXWZa4ALwVSQvrhv3mrhZvxugDTEJuugPrG5h-m4/s1600/1390941794000-SANDLER-BLENDED-SNEAK-MOV-jy-0234.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjxRz44pleQ3lj3uAkIUF2QZ4pqJKP57ta6z22abfw__ajnle0dPtzaDrP-pYJ1AjVvmAt3vJql6C1Yw5ah71OXCclz_IcvFEnPyVnXWZa4ALwVSQvrhv3mrhZvxugDTEJuugPrG5h-m4/s320/1390941794000-SANDLER-BLENDED-SNEAK-MOV-jy-0234.JPG" width="203" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">As dumb as it gets</td></tr> </tbody></table> A good half hour before the trip, we learn about our leads… Barrymore is a divorced and neurotic “closet organizer” who, after a reluctant blind date with Sandler at Hooters, tries her best with equally frantic sons while Sandler, a widower, is dealing with his own problems, especially an athletic oldest daughter mistaken for a boy despite resembling a gorgeous magazine model.  <br /> <br /> The only time Sander and Barrymore have chemistry is when all the distractions are gone: herein the chick flick audience will get what they paid for. But not a minute goes by without some kind of awkward intrusion by cast members seeming like GONG SHOW contestants that never get gonged... <br /> <br /> Perhaps the once mighty Sandler considers himself Teflon to bad comedy, and the last few years he’s just daring the awful jokes – some which seem intentionally futile – to bring his faithful audience down. Not even the signature "baby talk" sweetness, more forced and sappy than ever, works like it did in his leaner youth. And while past films had special guest stars playing themselves, ranging from Bob Barker to Al Pacino to Vanilla Ice, the owner of Dick's Sporting Goods makes an appearance... Talk about obscure! <br /> <br /> No matter how you slice it, fans of THE WEDDING SINGER will most likely sing the blues along with the latter 50 FIRST DATES crowd. And when BLENDED finally ends, a cutesy closing credit singalong provides nails in an already sealed coffin, so get out while you can! 

2014, adam sandler, drew barrymore, romantic comedy

ADAM & DREW RETURN IN BLENDED

year: 2014 Just when you thought it was safe to go back to an Adam Sandler movie, up rears BLENDED, a romantic comedy crossed between ...

ADAM SANDLER GROWS UP IN GROWN UPS 2

<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivuCWuJl7I6Hfsgr-9Qjifsk-Dnrt9yeBI4OeV3IkuZKl_GotDuyGUH1zoz6jTzO644q2t-w0eaiguf82gZ-uv9GNkoqb2iHbDqvpuDPSQlSLHmB9sEH-WBqEBUAVZyaqOc4wv8eJBTW_v/s1600/grown-ups2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivuCWuJl7I6Hfsgr-9Qjifsk-Dnrt9yeBI4OeV3IkuZKl_GotDuyGUH1zoz6jTzO644q2t-w0eaiguf82gZ-uv9GNkoqb2iHbDqvpuDPSQlSLHmB9sEH-WBqEBUAVZyaqOc4wv8eJBTW_v/s640/grown-ups2.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">year: 2013 cast: Adam Sandler, Chris Rock, Kevin James, David Spade, Salma Hayek rating: ***</td></tr> </tbody></table> Well the plot's already been established when successful Hollywood guy Lenny, played by Adam Sandler, revisited his hometown, a woodsy hole-in-the-wall where his childhood friends – including Chris Rock’s Kurt, David Spade’s Marcus, and token fat guy Kevin James as Eric – still reside. It took more than half the original film for Lenny to get accustomed to the change of scenery till everything fit like an old shoe. And now, since he’s decided to stay put with his wife and kids, the shoe fits a lot more comfortably.<br /> <br /> For a title like GROWN UPS there’s plenty of time centering on the kids, and yet it all connects. For instance Lenny, Marcus and Kurt’s troubled sons wind up partying with a group of college party animals at a rocky canyon lake. Not only is this location straight outta BREAKING AWAY, we have the local townies (i.e. our put-upon forty-something heroes) rediscovering their former hangout to the chagrin of the rich college jerks: all eventually squaring off in a massive rumble reminiscent of THE OUTSIDERS. But now we’re skipping ahead to the big party at Lenny’s pad where everyone winds up…<br /> <br /> Most of the film consists of the ensemble juggling bad luck misadventures. The funniest scenes have all four pals (sans Rob Schnieder) together, trading barbs at each other’s expense. The duller moments center on the smaller children or wives trying too hard to be like their fathers and husbands, which isn’t entirely their fault: dumb toilet humor doesn’t always work unless, like Sandler and company, you were born to be perfectly brainless. That said, GROWN UPS 2 is a superior sequel (silly dreck compared to a train wreck), not adhering to any particular corny plot or theme – just good times basking in 1980's pop culture nostalgia and, despite a few dull scenes stretching flat punch lines with pointless side-characters, it’s a party that works despite itself.

2013, adam sandler, chris rock, comedy, david spade, ensemble, kevin james, salma hayek

ADAM SANDLER GROWS UP IN GROWN UPS 2

year: 2013 cast: Adam Sandler, Chris Rock, Kevin James, David Spade, Salma Hayek rating: *** Well the plot's already been establishe...

HERE COMES THE BOOM

<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhShNY-HDwGNs5-suN4XNVv1znvu0XjunydgAnlP6cqW9hgjGBP-9Z-zUSe725uhP4BqY3FZC2ob6sseMNY5L2LVQnqqKO7sPT3KXgu4TI1sFjkbvWp5-Ti6RN7U4NP14hMBUnJHWIbM_E9/s1600/here12f-2-web.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="416" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhShNY-HDwGNs5-suN4XNVv1znvu0XjunydgAnlP6cqW9hgjGBP-9Z-zUSe725uhP4BqY3FZC2ob6sseMNY5L2LVQnqqKO7sPT3KXgu4TI1sFjkbvWp5-Ti6RN7U4NP14hMBUnJHWIbM_E9/s640/here12f-2-web.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">year: 2012 cast: Kevin James, Henry Winkler rating: ***1/2</td></tr> </tbody></table> While some aspects of HERE COMES THE BOOM share similar bad traits of the newer HAPPY MADISON productions… side characters trying hard to be endearing and jokes falling flat… this is actually pretty darn good.<br /> <br /> We begin with our underdog slob Scott Voss late for work – Kevin James looks the part of a guy whose best days are far behind him. He races to work on a motorcycle but he’s not the person to center on. Henry Winkler, who has become a revised icon in the Adam Sandler universe, plays an energetic MR. HOLLAND’S OPUS style music teacher who might lose his job… The school’s funds are dead and now we’ll cut to the chase: Voss, hanging out with one of his night school foreign students, realizes he could even make bank if he loses a UCF competition. For those unaware, this is a cross between martial arts, boxing, and gladiator death matches: and we all know the tubby underdog hasn’t a prayer – and that’s what makes this really work.<br /> <br /> The scenes where Voss trains, whether in montage form or part of various fights leading up to the big match, are both involving and funny. Although nothing really hilarious occurs in this feel-good sports comedy that tanked at that box office, you’ll be shocked at just how entertaining it is. While James is never quite sure what his comedic niche entails… throwing dry sarcastic barbs one minute and being a sappy friendly dolt the next… he’s got the right fighting spirit throughout.

2012, adam sandler, comedy, henry winkler, kevin james, salma hayek, sport

HERE COMES THE BOOM

year: 2012 cast: Kevin James, Henry Winkler rating: ***1/2 While some aspects of HERE COMES THE BOOM share similar bad traits of the new...

HOTEL TRANSYLVANIA

<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1boRQ6-2mtveZItWkvX6O4bGGgsVSK8eGTyxqbRvsJvUpEuyYq8bDtPmKVIsemdn3sleLv8qk3YVBSMDCN61t_7w85xG-3lCcCv_LpsjaReIt6pMe_wJF6ocO_r6abA_n5HeKfo-cdxie/s1600/Hotel-Transylvania_20120622000003.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="340" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1boRQ6-2mtveZItWkvX6O4bGGgsVSK8eGTyxqbRvsJvUpEuyYq8bDtPmKVIsemdn3sleLv8qk3YVBSMDCN61t_7w85xG-3lCcCv_LpsjaReIt6pMe_wJF6ocO_r6abA_n5HeKfo-cdxie/s640/Hotel-Transylvania_20120622000003.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>year:</b> 2012 <b>voices:</b> Adam Sandler, Adam Samberg<b></b>:<b> rating:</b> *</td></tr> </tbody></table> What really bothers Dracula is the way he’s imitated. The usual mimic goes something like, “Hello, I’m Count Dracula” followed by the inevitable (drawn out in the Bela Lugosi accent) “blah, blah, blah.” Each of those words describe the film, which doesn’t have a plot but more of a situation: Dracula’s daughter Mavis is of-age and desires going amongst the humans.<br /> <br /> Drac's an overprotective dad and wants her to stay at home: in a giant mansion he’s turned into a plush hotel for all the monsters of the world to relax. A human named Jonathan, in the form of a twenty-something hippie lughead, happens into the Hotel... which is really just a sprawling lobby with so many monsters mashed together not one of them stands out as funny or important.<br /> <br /> Mavis and Jonathan hit it off but Dracula gets to him first – and frantically masquerades the kid into monster form so his daughter won’t know the difference. That about sums up this claustrophobic mess, but with a title like HOTEL TRANSYLVANIA it shouldn’t be surprising most of the film takes place there. The only problem is: there’s little more than that over-saturated lobby that gets really dull quick.<br /> <br /> Sandler, who’s needed a hit for years, doesn’t suck in doing Drac’s voice, but Adam Samberg’s Jonathan sounds like a deliberate imitation of an airhead college jerk you wouldn’t want to spend a minute with, much less ninety – which feels more like an eternity.<br /> <br /> So if you want to have a real monster shindig, rent the Rankin/Bass stop-motion classic MAD MONSTER PARTY where the ghoulish inhabitants <i>all</i> have purpose.<br /> <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikkIeYJC74SKxKEF0Xv_scEWCn_zStQz418SRjCuDehzKFQ7qfmuEcqwku3yTlmSdCranFgLgVxbg9fdQiwVUPHAULGPGJDGdeK5f7Xg-uelXH5YiYE6-KIN2lV9RkUosAl8ZsaYxxDuDu/s1600/Mad_Monster_Party_DVD_4.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="420" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikkIeYJC74SKxKEF0Xv_scEWCn_zStQz418SRjCuDehzKFQ7qfmuEcqwku3yTlmSdCranFgLgVxbg9fdQiwVUPHAULGPGJDGdeK5f7Xg-uelXH5YiYE6-KIN2lV9RkUosAl8ZsaYxxDuDu/s640/Mad_Monster_Party_DVD_4.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">MAD MONSTER PARTY (1967) is the better place to spend your time</td></tr> </tbody></table> <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> </div>

2012, adam sandler, computer animated

HOTEL TRANSYLVANIA

year: 2012 voices: Adam Sandler, Adam Samberg : rating: * What really bothers Dracula is the way he’s imitated. The usual mimic goes...

ADAM SANDLER IN THAT'S MY BOY

<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody> <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkd6WCa29mhYpixGQa3ZOwDXSIgRXVRjbJTCmeE1jvXFeYkqfKvywURf1vy7pJN_bqtywEXBU5Du9Qia4LsO8zwdwXZMPWwwNEWevBjP1b31Q3y5uB2i_8geqJoEYRZyKkIsheAZSHefqR/s1600/boy__1339696156_0334.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="260" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkd6WCa29mhYpixGQa3ZOwDXSIgRXVRjbJTCmeE1jvXFeYkqfKvywURf1vy7pJN_bqtywEXBU5Du9Qia4LsO8zwdwXZMPWwwNEWevBjP1b31Q3y5uB2i_8geqJoEYRZyKkIsheAZSHefqR/s400/boy__1339696156_0334.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr> <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">year: 2012 rating:*</td></tr> </tbody></table> Sounding a cross between Little Nicky and Billy Madison, Adam Sandler provides his worst performance in a comedy that makes JACK AND JILL seem like THE WEDDING SINGER. We begin with a pretty boy pre-teen (did Sandler ever look like this?) having an affair with his lustful teacher. She has a baby, goes to jail, and Sandler’s Donny becomes a media sensation seen through the opening credits.<br /> <br /> The real story begins thirty years later as Donny’s uptight son “Todd,” played by hipster era Sandler, Adam Samberg, is about to land a big promotion and marry his beautiful high-maintenance fiance. Meanwhile Donny, in his own seedy neck of the woods, owes a bundle for taxes and will go to jail if he doesn’t get fifty grand. With an offer to appear on a tabloid show, he has to maneuver his son, who he hasn’t seen in years, to visit mom (the teacher) in jail for a big payoff.<br /> <br /> Dad and his boy reunite in Todd’s boss’s summer home before the wedding, and most of the film has the duo tricking everyone – Donny’s supposedly his best friend and Todd, living a lie and having changed his name from “Han Solo,” just wants to be normal. With an abundance of “toilet jokes” that keeps pushing a ragged envelope – from masturbation to incest to everything you can possibly imagine – the plot is all but forgotten.<br /> <br /> Donny's a sloppy playboy but lacks the charm that'd make us believe any woman would fall for him while Todd remains a deer caught in headlights, never changing his "I can't believe this is happening" expression. And an all-night bachelor party, trying for the stuff THE HANGOVER characters would have forgotten, is full of bawdy situations completely lacking humor or purpose. Not even pop culture punchline Vanilla Ice (as Todd's surrogate uncle), a cameo by Todd Bridges or an abundance of Roth-Era Van Halen can save the day... or night. It’s in the 11th hour, when the wedding approaches and the truth of Samberg’s betrothed is in question, that we begin to wonder what'll happen next. But by then it’s too, too much, much too late.

2012, adam samberg, adam sandler, comedy, van halen

ADAM SANDLER IN THAT'S MY BOY

year: 2012 rating:* Sounding a cross between Little Nicky and Billy Madison, Adam Sandler provides his worst performance in a comedy tha...

JACK AND JILL

<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwrnltwBEsMcWbha9kensq7vY-iDw-wsxdkbUwlMZ-6T4cJjn6hNAfnuMWbhvG9uxoamk5dLH4IsQgP9KZxQ08Rk8ywNUGr4PwJR49uUHuVC2FZX1ln4-PfzCHo8BxYedW99Rno60ar9TO/s1600/jack.and.jill.columbia.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" height="400" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5674271808731652290" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwrnltwBEsMcWbha9kensq7vY-iDw-wsxdkbUwlMZ-6T4cJjn6hNAfnuMWbhvG9uxoamk5dLH4IsQgP9KZxQ08Rk8ywNUGr4PwJR49uUHuVC2FZX1ln4-PfzCHo8BxYedW99Rno60ar9TO/s400/jack.and.jill.columbia.jpg" style="float: right; height: 200px; margin: 0px 0px 10px 10px; width: 196px;" width="392" /></a><span style="font-weight: bold;">title:</span> JACK AND JILL<br /> <span style="font-weight: bold;">year: </span>2011<br /> <span style="font-weight: bold;">cast: </span>Adam Sandler, Al Pacino<br /> <span style="font-weight: bold;">rating: </span>**<br /> <br /> Does it even need to be said that Adam Sandler playing his own sister would make an awful movie? It’s pretty obvious, being that this particular gimmick is an indication that a sitcom's run out of ideas – which this plays out like: a pilot that’d be cancelled in a flash. And does it have to be said that Al Pacino, playing "himself" with the hots for Adam Sandler in drag, is blasphemous to classic filmgoers?<br /> <br /> For anyone who thinks Al merely provides a cameo, he’s one of the main characters. Scenes involving the iconic actor dating Jill, the twin sister of TV director Jack… who really wants Pacino to star in a donut commercial… are about as bad as things get. But worst of all: it’s not even fun to bag on. While a few one-liners involving Jill spouting politically-incorrect statements aren’t completely without merit, and there's a so-bad-it's-entertaining aspect during the first half, the rest of the film, as a melancholy score evokes sympathy for her subliminally lonesome character, is an uneven mess.The locations involving Jill ruining Jack’s existence on a prolonged holiday visit go from a mansion to a cruise ship, where Sandler returns to his bad movie roots ala GOING OVERBOARD, which is THE WEDDING SINGER comparably. Pretty bad stuff here, but who’s surprised? And there's one telling scene where Pacino, after viewing the cheesy commercial he filmed for Jack, says something like: "This is terrible. No one can see this." Perhaps he was speaking of the movie itself, because the commercial is way more entertaining, and funnier too.

adam sandler, al pacino, comedy, tens

JACK AND JILL

title: JACK AND JILL year: 2011 cast: Adam Sandler, Al Pacino rating: ** Does it even need to be said that Adam Sandler playing his ow...

ZOOKEEPER

<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwbyMirRLZytQ8iREBueaHohmqUIXoElPY5OQK9725mKu9SPWEBlK-WU50M8tWliyqgcEK4YHycYLKBeGRwe9_KxcGvJNrBGUrfHv3ZRMMIvBK7_pNifN63Oc356RbhRwKXpzZri91Bo9p/s1600/the_zookeeper011.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5627787072596656498" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwbyMirRLZytQ8iREBueaHohmqUIXoElPY5OQK9725mKu9SPWEBlK-WU50M8tWliyqgcEK4YHycYLKBeGRwe9_KxcGvJNrBGUrfHv3ZRMMIvBK7_pNifN63Oc356RbhRwKXpzZri91Bo9p/s200/the_zookeeper011.jpg" style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 151px; height: 200px;" /></a><span style="font-weight: bold;">title:</span> ZOOKEEPER<br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">year:</span> 2011<br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">cast: </span>Kevin James, Rosario Dawson, Leslie Bibb, Nick Nolte, Adam Sandler<br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">rating:</span> *<br /><br />Kevin James works at a zoo, where after hours the animals gather around talking to each other. But that aspect is only half the ride. Most of the time it's our put-upon hero having love troubles with his ex-girlfriend Leslie Bibb, who'd rather see him selling imported cars, which he takes a stab at to the animal’s chagrin. At this point the creatures have already “broken the code” and are giving him verbal advice on love. Funny thing, since Bibb resembles a model, none of the animals tell their chubby pal to lose weight for a better chance at keeping her. But animals are nicer than humans, especially an abused, sulky Gorilla voiced by Nick Nolte, who joins James in a night out a TGIF and becomes his best friend. The segments with the animals are silly, and not very funny, but hey, that’s all right.<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2q-cJu5i7Jh3W2twI2J-EOGs84g4MX5XHLezK8ztHxHdzIMvtR-Yhya8oKWuh6nQQEv84UxOBoc_-e08pKoO8WsiE9X3kXjzje82OE_nFB7jyTUUKJNe__CzVfAQXeJiM7AQC9A6_CFiG/s1600/9772958-large.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5627786925160286610" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2q-cJu5i7Jh3W2twI2J-EOGs84g4MX5XHLezK8ztHxHdzIMvtR-Yhya8oKWuh6nQQEv84UxOBoc_-e08pKoO8WsiE9X3kXjzje82OE_nFB7jyTUUKJNe__CzVfAQXeJiM7AQC9A6_CFiG/s200/9772958-large.jpg" style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 136px;" /></a> Sylvester Stallone as the king lion and especially Adam Sandler as a spastic monkey get a few laughs. And Nolte seems human enough to feel for, although his input gets a bit melodramatic. But the bland love story, or stories... as eagle expert Rosario Dawson, in helping James make Bibb jealous, falls for him as well... is what stinks up the joint. Two gorgeous girls longing for an clumsy overweight everyman is more outlandish than animals talking. Yet throughout this entire mess, the main problem is the star himself: having to rely on overboard pratfalls to make up for the fact that… at least in this outing… he just isn’t funny.

adam sandler, comedy, nick nolte, sylvester stallone, tens

ZOOKEEPER

title: ZOOKEEPER year: 2011 cast: Kevin James, Rosario Dawson, Leslie Bibb, Nick Nolte, Adam Sandler rating: * Kevin James works at a zoo...

GROWN UPS

<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4QYmTcxHLZewPRxy3C_GkohY8VP64tM2wfD9z5TQL2Xv7udxK0mtfbk4ZHvXry1fh4QRdbAeJl11I4vgEvKoZWmdq-8IuVKpBlQqNlhigwh-R3zGdOd8kMybuE6N3SCiYBsyePu9vVpY/s1600/grownups.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5559238789182054194" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4QYmTcxHLZewPRxy3C_GkohY8VP64tM2wfD9z5TQL2Xv7udxK0mtfbk4ZHvXry1fh4QRdbAeJl11I4vgEvKoZWmdq-8IuVKpBlQqNlhigwh-R3zGdOd8kMybuE6N3SCiYBsyePu9vVpY/s200/grownups.jpg" style="MARGIN: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; WIDTH: 169px; FLOAT: right; HEIGHT: 200px; CURSOR: pointer" /></a><span style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold">title:</span> GROWN UPS<br /><div><span style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold">year: </span>2010</div><div><span style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold">cast:</span> Adam Sandler, Rob Schneider, David Spade, Chris Rock</div><div><span style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold">rating:</span> *1/2</div><br /><div></div><div>The problem with this horrendous Adam Sander (and friends) comedy isn't the plot, a BIG CHILL clone about a group of <span style="FONT-STYLE: italic">grown ups </span>spending a rural weekend in honor of their recently departed basketball coach: a prime mentor during the good old days when they played boardgames and hung around outdoors, something their kids, all video game addicts, find boring... It's the terrible one-liners, choppy editing, and the way in which, like many of Sandler's lesser films, the ensemble cast (Adam's usual cronies) are having more fun than the audience.</div>

adam sandler, chris rock, comedy, david spade, ensemble, joyce van patten, kevin james, tens

GROWN UPS

title: GROWN UPS year: 2010 cast: Adam Sandler, Rob Schneider, David Spade, Chris Rock rating: *1/2 The problem with this horrendous Adam...